World Radiocommunication Conferences 2015 (CMR15)

The World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 (WRC15) of the United Nations Organization reached an international agreement in the Swiss city of Geneva to track civilian satellite flights, to avoid the repetition of the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 in March of last year. This means that satellites will be able to receive transmissions, known as "Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast" (ADS-B), from civil aircraft currently only received at ground stations. This extends the current coverage of the ADS-B system to the entire world, including ocean, polar and desert areas. The frequency band of 1087.7-1092.3MHz, which is currently used for terrestrial transmission only, was allocated to the mobile satellite aeronautical service (Earth-to-Space).

The implementation of this agreement will depend on the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), another UN agency based in Montreal (Canada), which will apply the measure with the airlines. Currently, 70 percent of the planet's surface is excluded from this surveillance.

"This agreement comes after the disappearance and tragic loss of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 in March 2014, with 239 people on board, which triggered worldwide discussions about global flight tracking and the need for coordinated action by part of the ITU and other relevant organizations, "said ITU.

"Today’s move will allow for better tracking and location of aircraft that might otherwise disappear from ground surveillance systems," said the US ambassador to the conference, Decker Anstrom. He added that "it is an excellent example of how nations, working through the ITU process, can take steps to improve people's lives." Several officials praised the speed with which the decision was made to implement satellite tracking of the aircraft. For his part, François Rancy, Head of the Radiocommunication Bureau said "The allocation of frequencies for receiving ADS-B signals on satellites will allow real-time monitoring of airplanes anywhere in the world."

In October 2014, the Plenipotentiary Conference instructed WRC15 to consider global flight tracking on its agenda. "By reaching this agreement at WRC15, ITU has responded in record time to the expectations of the international community on the important issue regarding global flight tracking," said Secretary General Houlin Zhao and concluded, "ITU will continue working with ICAO and other organizations to continue improving security in heaven. "